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Vale of the White Horse
Topic Started: 5 Jan 2010, 13:03 (19,265 Views)
Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
She took the food, but ate slowly. She didn’t even taste it. If there was anything in the roundhouse she missed most, it was the weaving board. She remembered her unfinished cloth; the owls she had begun to work into the fabric. The story of Blodeuwedd.
‘I wonder if we’ll ever live to see the Vale again,’ she muttered quietly.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
It was a good thing, Rufus reflected, that Cuhelyn was of the sort that rather bit his tongue than to admit he was in pain. Screams might cultivate some unfortunate curiosity in his neighbours, and he couldn't have that. His mood had considerably lightened ever since he'd gotten his hands on Morcant's friend. The only damper on things was that he, after almost a day of - well, casual persuading, really, hadn't given him one single bit of useful information. Rufus would have to step up his game a notch. He gestured at the soldier that was giving the man a kidney massage with his boots, and pulled up a chair.
'So,' he said conversationally, 'ready to share your thoughts already? We really don't need to continue this, you know. You're a strong man. I could use the likes of you.'
But the only response he got was a dirty look and spittle on his boot. Rufus shrugged his shoulders. 'If you want to be that way.' He got up and bent over Cuhelyn, backhanding him with so much force he heard his neck crack. Cuhelyn groaned and spit some blood on the floor.
'I've had women hit me harder than that,' he said hoarsely.
Rufus only smiled. It was as if the guy wanted to die. Well, he wasn't going to comply just yet. He still owed Cuhelyn a world of hurt. 'Give a shout once you've had enough, will you?' he said graciously and retreated to his chair once more. Though Rufus was never one to abhor getting his hands dirty, he preferred to wait until his subject of torture was sufficiently warmed up before he stepped in for the real work.

Getting to the real work seemed to provide some trouble. Rufus held the easily upset stomachs of his soldiers accountable for that, and when there wasn't any noticable improvement after dinner, he told the men to get the hell out of there. There was nothing conversational or cordial in his voice when he spoke to Cuhelyn this time. 'Frankly, Cuhelyn, I'm getting quite sick of this.'
'Didn't ask for it,' came the answer, sounding considerably winded.
'Oh, I'm not talking about hurting you. I could make killing you my life's work, if there was a way to bring you back from the dead. No, I'm getting sick of wasting my time here.'
Cuhelyn shrugged. At least he had the grace to look as if the gesture hurt him. 'Then finish it. Not sayin' anything.'
A rather disconcerting smile spread across Rufus' features. 'Won't you, now. Well, I guess Essylt will pay the price.'
In the way his head snapped up, and in the alarm that showed in Cuhelyn's eyes, Rufus knew he'd hit the sore spot. He'd already had the opportunity to study the man's behavior concerning Essylt, and where Morcant was wearing his heart on his sleeve, Cuhelyn was much more subdued about his love for the girl. This was very near to turning into one of those stories where everything revolved around one single girl, he thought with an amused little snort.
'You're bluffing.' Cuhelyn sounded like a trapped animal. How nice of him.
'Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. The real question is whether you'd risk her safety on the assumption that I'm untrustworthy.' His smile broadened and he walked around the chair Morcant's friend was tied to. 'Well?'
This time he didn't have his answer so ready. '...Drop dead.'
'Ah,' Rufus sighed while selecting the sharpest knife in the inventory. 'Not before you, my friend. Let's see, now.' He tapped the blade against the palm of his hand. 'I'll be happy to put you out of my misery if you answer me just one question: where are your friends in hiding?'
Cuhelyn laughed with the laugh of a man already considering himself dead. 'Closer than you think, you git.'
And that was pretty much the last thing Rufus would get out of him. He amused himself for a couple of hours by trying to forcefully get the man to talk again, but eventually he grew tired of it. All his spare adrenalin was long since gone, and it wasn't half as fun torturing someone if they didn't squeal in pain or beg for their lives, sobbing. 'I guess we're pretty much done here, then. At least you won't have to live with the fact that you could've saved Essylt, but didn't, for very much longer,' he said with fake sympathy before burying his sword up to the hilt in Cuhelyn's stomach. A stream of blood gushed from the man's mouth, soiling Rufus' tunic and arms, but there was still no scream. He wrenched the sword from side to side, then pulled back and looked with disgust at the limp form. There was a faint smile on the lips, as if the man was mocking him with his last breath. Rufus growled and kicked the body backwards, his heel connecting with the nose in a wet, rather satisfying crunch. Then he bellowed for the guards.
They arrived within minutes, as they damn well should have. Rufus gestured towards the dead man. 'Untie him and bury him in Briallen's garden. Make sure no one sees you, or I'll personally make sure you'll end up in a far worse state than him,' he said to the captain of the soldiers.
'But the ground is almost frozen solid,' the man protested.
'Then take a bloody pick axe with you!' Rufus snapped. 'I don't care how you do it, as long as you do, you incompetent mongrel.'
The captain quickly saluted and told his men to get to work. As they did, Rufus pulled off his tunic and threw it in a corner of the dungeon before striding naked towards the bathing room.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘Gwyddien says now.’
Rhywallon nodded. He didn’t feel half as weary in his bones as before. Spring was finally pushing through the forest, and it seemed his bravery was budding along with the leaves. He entered the tent with Elgued, who cast him a glance but said nothing as they settled themselves before Gwyddien.
The old man looked at both of them, but Rhywallon felt him scanning his face – his, in particular, because he knew that Elgued would always be prepared to follow wherever his uncle send him.
‘The news is ill,’ Gwyddien said. ‘Though how ill, I cannot quite say. Elgued, when were your last contacts with Cuhelyn and Morcant?’
The man shrugged. ‘A while back. Before spring, that is, and certainly before the winter gnawed too hard on the lands.’
‘What’s wrong?’ Rhywallon asked. He thought about Morcant and his girl. Things were bound to go wrong for them, he believed – and what did that say about himself and Gwenllian?
‘It is Cuhelyn. He’s disappeared, he’s left no traces that we could find. I fear the worst. For him as well as what this could mean for the Brotherhood.’
There was a long silence. Rhywallon began to nod; he couldn’t quite help it. ‘I understand.’
‘Do you?’
‘Yes, I do. It is that Rufus. His claws are long, longer than you believed. Always underestimating him, haven’t you? And you, Elgued, you too.’
‘We cannot be sure,’ Gwyddien said. ‘Nevertheless –’
‘Nevertheless, you’re alarmed,’ Rhywallon muttered. ‘Quite right too.’ He stood up. ‘Your orders, then?’
‘You said you would consider returning to the Vale.’
‘I did. I have.’
‘Well?’
Rhywallon shook his head, feeling the tension in his jaw as he clenched his teeth together. ‘I said, what are your orders?’
‘This means he will go,’ Elgued said, rising himself.
Rhywallon felt his heavy hand on his shoulder, but didn’t shrug it off. ‘The Brotherhood has done much for me once again,’ he said. ‘If Cuhelyn is still alive, I will find him. Are you joining me?’ he asked Elgued. The man nodded.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Gwenllian had learned when the expressions on the faces of the men indicated that something was the matter. They tried to keep her out of business as much as they could, out of courtesy she was sure, but her nature had always been curious. Especially now that the events of before the winter had started to take their proper place among her memories. They were sometimes still as vivid as nightmares, but it was increasingly easier to live with them, she found. She could only hope that it was the same for Rhywallon.
So she'd managed to start baking bread in the vicinity of Gwyddien's tent. So close, in fact, that she could make most words out if she strained her hearing. Not for one moment did she think that she was fooling anyone, but they seemed to, if not allow, at least pretend they didn't notice she was there.
What she heard now was a little disquieting. It was still dangerous in the Vale, though Rhywallon could surely take on Rufus. But Gwenllian didn't want to stay behind on her own. The brotherhood had been good to her, Gwyddien and Elgued especially, but the thought of Rhywallon being off on his own somewhere brought the memories back with a sharp pang. She pressed her lips together and the thoughts to the back of her mind. That was then, this was now. There was no need to act like a baby. Yet, she bashed her fists into the soft dough with a tight-lipped expression on her face.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He saw her sitting there, on her knees, turning over the flat loafs of bread without burning her fingers. Rhywallon watched her as Elgued passed them by, not even grinning.
‘So you heard all about it.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Yes,' she said, brushing some flour off her tunic and looking up to Rhywallon. 'Is Elgued coming?' Though she'd heard the question being asked, she didn't know whether Elgued had answered with yes or no. If there were two of them, Gwenllian figured, she could come along without anyone being able to make a fuss about her safety.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘Yes, he is.’ Rhywallon crossed his arms. ‘He believes that dealing with Rufus is easy, but that will be easily remedied once we get there.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Rufus had made her nervous when she'd been in the Vale, and she knew he was dangerous in his own right - but it just didn't weigh up to the memories of Spurius Sulpicius. 'I see.' Gwenllian nodded. 'I ask because I - well, I want to go with you.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He’d been afraid this would happen. Of course she wanted to come. She was Gwenllian, wasn’t she? The girl who had saved him.
But he chewed on the inside of his cheek. She had said the same when he had left to Siluri territory. Warnings didn’t seem to make a difference, but they’d both be fools to fall for the same traps a second time. ‘Despite everything?’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Because of everything,' she answered with a faint smile. 'Not that I've cultivated a fear of abandonment, but I wouldn't like to stay behind when you're off doing something potentially dangerous again.' Gwenllian squeezed her hands together, hoping. If Rhywallon said no, there was probably nothing she could do to persuade him. Except going around his back to ask Elgued, or Gwyddien, but she wouldn't like to do that.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He saw the expression on her face, and the way she clenched her hands. ‘Would I stop you?’ he asked. He’d like to smile, even though it made his face hurt. But he couldn’t, because damn it – he was scared to go back, even without her. Romans were beasts, and if Rufus was a little less violent than Sulpicius, he made that up with brain.
He bent forward, kneeling before the smouldering fire and the baking bread on the stone plate, taking her slim face between his hands. Her hair was like a crown. ‘If you want to go,’ he told her, bringing his brow to hers, ‘if you really want to.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'I do,' she said, putting her hand over his. 'Really. I made a promise to Briallen, as well. I'd help her with lord Tudwrig's - sickness. Finding a cure, I mean. But then Higueid showed up...' Ah, that all seemed like a lifetime ago, Gwenllian thought with a faraway smile. 'I mean, I would like to see her again, as well.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘I understand.’ But he didn’t believe that the chieftain could protect her against Marcus Lentulus. Would, maybe. And Briallen was a strong sort of woman, he had seen that. But maybe not all of that was enough. ‘You’re wanted for murder of your husband. We both are. What are you going to say?’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
To be sure, Gwenllian had quite forgotten about that little ordeal. So much had happened, since then. She put a hand against her brow and thought for a bit. 'Not the caer, then. Where were you and Elgued going to stay in the Vale?' Perhaps she could see Briallen at Wayland's Smithy. Get a message to her, or something of the sort.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘He knows me now,’ Rhywallon muttered, pointing at his face. ‘And this is especially conspicuous, isn’t it? But there are woods close to the hillfort. We’ll probably hang around there, see what we can see, hear what we can hear. Kill whomever we can.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
If she hadn't experienced what she'd experienced in Wayland's Smithy, she'd have suggested that they make camp there. Gwenllian simply nodded, then turned back to flip the bread baking. She was already making a mental list of provisions and things they'd need.

They left the following day. Elgued had proven very helpful with the provisions while Rhywallon was taking care of other things. Gwenllian had retrieved a pair of trousers small enough to fit her; she wasn't a fan sitting in a saddle while wearing dresses. She was wearing a longer tunic as a concession, however, and with the cloak she was wearing it wouldn't be that obvious.
Even though spring had made its announcement, the weather was still chilly and the road was muddy. It was slow going around the camp of the brotherhood, but all in all she was satisfied to be on the move again. She felt restless.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He heard the sound of rythmic steps before he could squint his eyes and check the surroundings. It was dense; the trees lined up side by side in messy groups, as if the forest had made soldiers of its own. Much good they’d do if he was right and there was no way to avoid the real warriors, Rhywallon thought. He felt weary, really. Sulpicius seemed to have sapped some of his endurance. And he had been thinking, this winter, in their weeks before spring – perhaps it was enough now. Even atonement had to end one day, hadn’t it?
He held up his hand, but Elgued had keen ears as well.
‘Sounds like five, give or take.’
‘We can have them.’
‘We can. What about her?’ Elgued’s eyes shot to Gwenllian.
‘She’s not stupid.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Gwenllian returned Elgued's gaze. Her heart was beating in her throat and she'd put her hand on the hilt of her dagger. The last experience she'd had with attacking Romans and the killing thereof hadn't been one she'd have liked to repeated, but if there was no other choice... She glanced at Rhywallon. 'What's the plan?' she asked quietly.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘We don’t have to face them,’ he muttered and realized at once that it was cowardice that made him say that. ‘We'll be saving our strength – we’ve a long way ahead of us.’
To his relief, Elgued nodded without giving him a suspicious glance. He wondered if the man even knew fear. He had thought himself fearless, not so long ago. Apparently it was a thing that could always return to you, even when you believed you’d been stripped off of it.
‘We go round,’ Elgued told them in a hushed voice. ‘They’re west of us, so we head this way. But that’s no guarantee and if it does come to a fight, I need you to be ready.’
That was not for him, of course. Rhywallon was always ready. Wasn’t he?
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Ready to do what, fight or hide?' asked Gwenllian, whispering. She wasn't really sure which one she'd prefer. Certainly, she didn't like killing one bit, but running and hiding didn't exactly tickle her fancy, either. She'd done way too much of that in the past months.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘Whatever seems best,’ Rhywallon muttered. They had reached a small junction in the road, though the path was hardly more than a route for animals. ‘Quiet now.’ He glanced around, spotted the movements. Romans – who else could make such systematic noise? He didn’t care for their organization, it was still <i>noise</i>.
With his hand, he motioned Gwenllian and Elgued to follow him as he made his silent way past the trees. Breathe wrong, and they’d be seen.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Every time her horse's hooves hit the ground, Gwenllian involuntarily flinched. It was tense, and she thought she'd even preferred a fight out in the open over this nervous sneaking. When they emerged out of the thicket with no Roman in sight, she breathed a sigh of relief and loosened her shoulders.
But it was hardly five foot later that a harsh voice behind them sounded: 'You there! Hold your horses!'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘Oh, pox to that,’ he heard Elgued mumble.
Rhywallon turned around, spotting the soldiers too close. They’d never outrun them now if they tried to get away, but they didn’t have their weapons pointing them. Was it even possible that they did not recognize his face, now, in the uncovering daylight?
It seemed unwise to speak, so he said nothing. But Elgued pulled off an innocent face, though he didn’t believe that Roman soldiers would find his blue tattoos so harmless.
‘Yes, my friends?’
‘Don’t even start, we’re not your friends,’ one of the soldiers barked.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Elgued lifted his hands. 'Easy, neighbour. Just trying to be friendly.'
It took her an immense effort, but Gwenllian was able to unclench her hands from the reigns and at least look as if she was completely at ease. The Roman up front was still looking suspiciously at them.
'Where are you going?' the man demanded to know. Despite her nerves, Gwenllian thought he was a bit of a pompous ass.
'We're just travelling back home, from a visit to our family in Two Lakes,' she said softly and tried to smile as charmingly as she could.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘And who’re you with?’
‘With me.’ Rhywallon came up to Gwenllian. ‘She’s my wife.’
Perhaps he had been in the shadows after all. He could see the romans gazing at his face, but it took a while for them to gather their wits back. Then, the bravest or rudest of the group sneered.
‘And what happened to you, ugly?’
‘Bad luck,’ he replied stiffly. ‘It can happen to any man.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Gwenllian pursed her lips together and drew a breath, but Elgued beat her to it.
'If you've got nothing better to do than throw insults, neighbours, we'll be on our way,' he said coolly.
The Roman who had spoken first straightened his shoulders and gestured at the other soldier, shutting him up. 'From what chieftaincy are you, then?' He was still looking suspiciously from one to the other.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘Vale of the White Horse,’ Rhywallon answered. ‘A meaningless place and we’re just on our way back.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Hm. All right, I'll want your names and then you can be on your way.'
Elgued raised his eyebrows. 'Will you give us yours?'
For a moment, Gwenllian thought he'd gone too far and that there'd be a fight. But the fact that she was present seemed to make a difference, because while the Roman bunched his muscles at first, after a glance at her he leaned back in his saddle with a disdainful expression on his face. Before anyone could've said anything else, she put in: 'Why so stern, cousin? There's no harm in telling our names, because we've nothing to hide. I'm Cafell, my lord. This is my husband Heddwyn, and my cousin Olwydd.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
Rhywallon saw him observing Gwenllian for a moment. She didn’t even blink. He tried not to smile as the Roman nodded, almost disappointed. ‘Off you go then. But do teach your family to mind their tongues.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Gwenllian shrugged, smiling her sweetest smile. 'I would try, but I'm afraid that they're too old to learn new ways,' she said lightly before kicking her heels in the sides of her horse. Her heart was still beating fast, and any moment she expected a blade at her throat.
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